The Line between Protection and Pride
by EvanSol0919
Summary: In order to protect her, he had to destroy her soul. Byakuya's thoughts during the Zanpaktou Rebellion.
1. The Betrayal

So this is the first week I've been back in school where I haven't had a minimum of two papers do so I'm just trying to get all these stories out of my system!

As anyone could tell by the stories I already have, I LOVE Byakuya. He's an arrogant idiot but I love him all the same!

So I was re-watching some of the Zanpaktou Rebellion and a thought came to me: what was Byakuya feeling when he killed Sode no Shirayuki and this is what I came up with.

I've been doing a lot of "thought" chapters haven't I? There actually not that hard to come up with.

Tell me what you think!

I do not own the actually manga characters, the anime characters, or the anime plot. (And remember, Byakuya's father was Soujun and Kouga married Ginrei's daughter)

Oh, if you have read my other story "Bound by Blood, Divided by Power" you might be able to pick up on a certain scene. Can you see it ;)

Yuki-onna: literally snow woman; figure from Japanese mythology

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The cave was dark, damp and just plain uncomfortable. Ideally, Byakuya wondered why the zanpaktou would make this their headquarters but such irrelevant notions were put aside.

Senbonzakura led the way, still pretending to be under Muramasa's spell. The sword's power was truly frightening. It was no wonder why the higher ups wanted him to be sealed along with his master.

His master… Kuchiki Kouga. How fortunate that he never had to meet his uncle. It would be easier to kill him for all his crimes.

But first he had to gain the trust of the renegade blades. No, he just needed to stay close to the chess master.

Byakuya had not wanted it to be this way but there was no other option.

To think it had only been a few days since that first warning sign.

It had been a standard sparring session between captain and vice-captain, one far different from their last encounter. This time there was to be no bloodshed and, hopefully, no mass destruction.

After all the chaos in the wake of numerous attacks on Seireitei, the Captain-Commander had issued a new decree that any damage a shinigami inflicted was to be paid for by their respected division. What did that mean for the damage that independent zanpaktous had caused when trying to kill their masters? Would the divisions still be held responsible?

Anyway, the training had continued without incident until Renji released his bankai. Though Byakuya knew he could have defeated the young man with just his shikai, the superior decided to honor his lieutenant by using his own final release. The red head had been training like mad and had grown much more skilled with his new power. Byakuya couldn't help but feel a smudge of pride at his second-in-command's determination. Not that he would ever show it.

The thousand swords of Senbonzakura Kageyoshi had risen from the ground before dissolving into a hundred million cherry blossoms that blotted out the sky itself.

After a customary insult about the slowness of Renji's Hihiou Zabimaru, Byakuya prepared his attack when something happened. Something that had _never_ happened.

One of the petals actually cut his hand, slicing through his glove and drawing blood.

The noble had been so taken aback that he almost didn't notice when Renji had released his Hikoutsu Taihou technique. Byakuya had barely managed to put up a proper defense, his mind still trying to understand what had happened.

He decided to call off the rest of the training session, leaving a visible concerned Renji with Ukitake and Kyouraku.

He did not return to the barracks but instead left for the Kuchiki Manor. He arrived at a small pond concealed by the thick branches of centuries old trees on the outskirts of one of the gardens, one that had particular significance to him.

Sitting on the rock before the water, he noticed little tadpoles swimming in the clear liquid below. A memory washed over him but now was not the time for nostalgia.

Closing his lids over his slate eyes, Byakuya entered his own inner world.

When his orbs opened again he was surrounded by swords. His inner world was exactly like his Senkei form. However, instead of four rows of glowing blades that existed in the outside world, here they extended for eternity, both above and below him. It was truly a wonder.

"Senbonzakura."

Nothing. No response.

He called out again but still nothing. Eventually he decided to leave but was beyond troubled. Shinigami and zanpaktou were alike in many ways, though Senbonzakura had a tendency to act like his master's younger self. They were part of the same whole. The wound on his hand was as if Byakuya had cut himself. It made no sense.

His concern had lasted through the night until a Hell Butterfly had summoned all high ranking members to the Soukyoku Hill on the orders of the Captain-Commander.

Byakuya now had a personal hatred for this place, the very ground soaked with his own blood as well as the blood he had spilt.

After arriving, his eyes instinctively saw his sister in the crowd which unnerved him slightly. He had still not given permission for her to be assigned a seated position though her skills called for it. He was still too concerned for her safety, although her connection to the human boy meant that she would always get drawn into whatever trouble he caused.

There was something very wrong with this entire situation. Why would the soutachiou call not only the captains but also the subordinates out in the open in the middle of the night? Everyone else felt the tension as well.

Then the lieutenant of the First Division, whatever his name was, had emerged out of nowhere before collapsing.

A tall, thin man appeared out of the fog. He possessed shaggy brown hair, turquoise colored eyes with lilac circles around them and wore a thick white robe-like coat with lines of dark purple. His most distinguished characteristic was his unnaturally long fingernails.

The strange person claimed that the captain-commander was not coming. Komamura had immediately confronted him. The Seventh Division captain was fiercely loyal to the soutaichou, going so far as to release his own bankai.

If Byakuya didn't know firsthand how much damage the ledge could take then he might have been concerned about the cliff collapsing.

And just like with Senbonzakura, Tenken attacked his master as well, which no one believed was possible.

The giant that was Komamura's bankai then disappeared and instead was a very large red man with fire coming out of his mouth. This new figure was then able to cut down the largest of the captains with childish ease.

Many others tried to release their own zanpaktous but no reiatsu could be felt from any sword.

The mysterious man claimed that he had "freed" the blades from their slave masters. Explosions began all over Seireitei as the screams of the lower shinigami was heard over the destruction.

To add to the confusion, several of the renegade zanpaktou came to the hill as others appeared out of nowhere, including a masked figure dressed in an elaborate samurai suit.

Byakuya stepped forward to ask what the heathen's name was.

"_Muramasa."_

That was impossible. He remembered his grandfather's words but how could this zanpaktou be here now when his master was sealed away?

"The Age of the Shinigami's rule over the Zanpaktou has ended. Now the Zanpaktou will rule over the Shinigami."

A revolution had just been declared.

Kyouraku had tried to change the subject by asking about the Captain-Commander but Muramasa claimed that they had sealed him away. Byakuya knew this wasn't true. Muramasa needed the soutaichou because he was the only one who knew where Kouga was. But that wasn't reassuring.

Then that foolish bald Eleventh Division member decided to just attack the zanpaktous without any effective strategy. His barbaric captain would be _so_ proud. Naturally, everything descended into a free-for-all until a much more powerful Hikoutsu Taihou forced the shinigami back into the streets of Seireitei.

It sounded cruel to say but Byakuya was not really concerned with the destruction that was occurring all around him. His entire focus was on locating one particular reiatsu.

When he found it, Rukia was sprawled out on the tiled roof, one of the zanpaktou with a long pike in his hand descending upon her.

Well that wouldn't do.

A quick kidou spell stopped that but then they were confronted by Muramasa and Senbonzakura.

Though he should have been expecting it, Byakuya was not prepared for his own sword to be used against him. The fight between shinigami and zanpaktou descended into the sewers where Byakuya was finally able to bring Senbonzakura back to normal. The blades own experience confirmed with absolute certainty that this was indeed the work of Kouga's blade.

They agreed that Senbonzakura would pretend to still be under the hypnosis of Muramasa while he, Byakuya, would try to find more information but turned out that Kouga's rampage was purposely not recorded in any of the databases. A black mark that had been erased from history.

Until now.

That left only one choice.

The rest of the zanpaktou were now within sight. It was easy to see who belonged to whom… but all his hidden focus was on one…

The woman was dressed in a perfect white kimono, glowing even in the limited light. Her skin was as pale as freshly fallen snow, hair long and glossy with appropriate ice blue eyes.

She was beautiful.

A fact that had never surprised him.

Of course she would be beautiful. Wasn't that obvious?

Sode no Shirayuki was the reflection of Rukia's soul.

And now he was going to be forced to destroy this manifestation.

Byakuya really needed to stop making these lifelong promises. No matter how separate they seemed to be, they always came into conflict with one another. And always in the worst possible way.

The scars of the last one were still etched onto his soul, his sins not completely atoned.

The events around Rukia's execution had nearly torn his mind in half and so afterward he had made yet another vow. On his pride, as well as his own sanity, he promised to protect her, _truly_ protect her the way he should have from the beginning. The self-loathing was already returning even though he hadn't done anything yet.

Rather foolishly, he tried to justify his actions, distorting and twisting logic to fit the way he needed it to.

With Sode no Shirayuki's power negated, Rukia would be forced to stay out of the majority of the upcoming battles. He would, indirectly, be protecting her.

And it wouldn't work.

Rukia was far too stubborn to sit on the sidelines while her friends were in danger.

How fortunate it was that one friend in particular had just happened to arrive from the World of the Living.

One who would never, on his soul, allow anything to happen to her.

Byakuya really did not know what was worse: having to entrust Rukia's safety in _his_ hands or knowing that he _could_.

It gave him a migraine just _thinking_ about it.

They had reached the bottom of the stairs by now. Unsurprisingly, the other zanpaktou did not want a shinigami to join them. They thought they were rebelling against the repressive rule of the death gods when they were the ones being used to free the master of their leader. It was certainly ironic.

Senbonzakura knew the plan and didn't like it any more than Byakuya did. He was as protective of Sode no Shirayuki as Byakuya was of Rukia. Still he would obey. The sword had been very critical of his master's decision not to intervene in the execution, being more forceful and assertive than he had ever been, but ultimately submitted to the soul reaper.

Though Byakuya sometimes wondered if Senbonzakura had allowed himself to be broken by Tensa Zangetsu's blade.

"Kuchiki Byakuya, I would like you to prove that you have truly betrayed the shinigami," Senbonzakura said, the others still believing he was one of them.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Kill your sister's zanpaktou, Sode no Shirayuki, right here and now!"

There was no turning back.

Before the other renegade swords could strike, he immediately attacked the woman.

With every clash, he could feel Rukia's reiatsu coming from the white blade. That certainly wasn't helping. The only thing that allowed him to focus was the fact that he had heard what had happened at the Kuchiki Manor, how the yuki-onna had nearly killed Rukia before Kurosaki Ichigo intervened.

While ignoring the fact that it really wasn't the sword's fault.

It was no surprise that Sode no Shirayuki was more powerful than Rukia but he wasn't concerned; he understood her abilities better than anyone.

When she dropped her guard, he immediately used kidou to bind her movements.

"There is nothing I won't kill to protect my pride."

No, there was nothing he wouldn't do, nothing he wouldn't destroy, to protect her.

Absolutely nothing.

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"Byakuya really did not know what was worse: having to entrust Rukia's safety in _his_ hands or knowing that he _could_. It gave him a migraine just _thinking_ about it."

Heehee, yeah I bet Ichigo and Rukia's unique relationship would ;)

I even managed to throw in some humorous things. Do you think that the divisions have to pay for the damage they cause? If so they must be so in debt.

And that Soukyoku hill must be made out of steel. How else would it still be standing?

I might continue this if I manage to find the time so let me know what you think!

Love from, EvanSol0919!


	2. Roles Reversed

Here's part 2!

RukiaGallega**: **Thank you for saying I can get into character's minds! Yeah, Byakuya is an idiot but that's part of the reason I love him (besides being the hottest!) Of course, by telling everyone of his intentions there would have been a greater chance of Muramasa finding out (although he should have known anyway; definitely the biggest plot hole of the arc). And yes, I agree that Rukia hero-worshipping her nii-sama is annoying. And this is more about Byakuya's fears of IchiRukia. I don't think the thought would sit well with our favorite noble!

Night's Flower: I really didn't like Byakuya either until he saved Rukia. Love him now!

Kaze05: I hope I'm doing a good job at displaying Byakuya's conflicted emotions. I think that, from Byakuya's POV, it is a tragedy. Once again, all his vows are coming into conflict with one another.

OkamiAnni: You are very sweet, sweet, sweet, sweet, sweet, sweeeeeeeeeeet!

ByarUki fan: That's one of my favorite parts too!

Pamila De Castro: Um… I can't speak/read Portuguese but thanks for the review!

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After destroying Sode no Shirayuki, Muramasa had sent him out to create a diversion so that the majority of the Gotei 13 would be located in one spot while the zanpaktou leader would be off doing his own research. The only instruction was that Kurosaki Ichigo had to be spared.

Whatever interest Muramasa had seen in the human boy was not going to beneficial. The Substitute Shinigami always had a way of becoming the center of the enemies' plans.

In order to make his "betrayal" known far and wide, the Sixth Division Captain decided to attack his own barracks.

The looks of relief on his subordinates' faces were quickly replaced by horror as he dealt deep wounds into their flesh. The injuries were serious but with proper medical attention they would all be curable. The noble would try to keep the death toll as low as he possible could.

Byakuya never thought he would have to destroy the Sixth Division barracks, the place where generations of Kuchiki heads had also reigned as captains. But it was because of the Kuchiki clan's honor that he was doing all this in the first place. It was his duty to carry out the task assigned to him by his grandfather, no matter what. Including what came next.

He had also come to this place because he knew someone else would be there as well…

"Nii-sama," a relieved voice said from behind.

"Rukia."

He couldn't face her now; his resolve might break upon seeing those violet eyes.

"Did you…" his sister whispered when she saw the devastation. "Nii-sama, what are you doing here? No, where have you been? Answer me, Nii-sama!" she demanded in growing anger.

"Here's your answer," a male voice said from the other side of the room.

"What? You… Sode no Shirayuki?" Rukia cried out in shock as he heard the shards of her beautiful sword hit the floor.

"Without Sode no Shirayuki, you have no way to fight," Senbonzakura stated.

"It can't be…"

Hearing her cries twisted her brother's heart. It was a sound he never wanted to hear again and done everything he could to prevent it. And yet again, he was the cause of her suffering.

"Stay out of this rebellion," the noble commanded. As her older brother and the head of the clan, she would be expected to follow his orders no matter what. Not that she would, especially not now.

"What have you done?" she whispered in shock.

"I'll be glad to show you!"

The clash of swords echoed through the empty room as they were joined by another person Byakuya didn't want to see.

"Renji!"

"Taichou, what's going on? Are you really on their side now?" his second-in-command asked in anger.

Unable to answer, the captain merely turned around, letting all his anger and frustration at the situation show in his eyes.

"Kuchiki-taichou, you're under arrest, as a co-conspirator behind the Zanpaktou Rebellion," the lieutenant stated. It was his duty to the Gotei 13. Ironically, that devotion had come from Byakuya himself.

"Please. You cannot stand up to me," the noble said in a bored tone.

"Shut up!" the red haired man screamed.

It only took a few moments for the captain to trap his opponent's sword; he still had a lot to learn.

"Shit! Howl…" but nothing happened.

"I was told that you used your Broken Baboon Fang in your last fight. You won't be able to use Shikai now."

"Who did you say couldn't use Shikai?" a harsh female voice said from the outside.

An explosion erupted into the room, leaving a large hole in the wall. Great, he was probably going to have to pay for all of this when this was finished. He had already seen the destruction that Sode no Shirayuki had done to the manor. That was going to be expensive.

"Renji might not be able to use Shikai, but that doesn't include us," the "monkey" of Zabimaru stated.

The manifested sword was quite an eyesore in the noble's opinion. The "snake" was an annoying child and the woman was just vulgar.

"I'll handle things here. You return to Muramasa," his own blade responded and Byakuya immediately agreed. He needed to stay as close to Muramasa as possible.

The rival swords bantered for a minute before beginning their attacks, leaving yet another hole in the wall. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Byakuya was not happy with that. The Eleventh Division vice-captain had already made all those secret doors in his own home. If she saw this, the child might get another idea.

"Nii-sama, don't go!" Rukia cried out. Before flash stepping away, his lieutenant's sword came toward his face before being blocked.

"We're not done with you yet!"

"I don't have time to play with you."

He recognized the determination in Renji's brown eyes. It was the same look that he gave when they fought before Rukia's execution. Now they were on opposite sides of the law.

"My words aren't getting through to you." They never did.

Byakuya did not want to fight him again but it was necessary to fulfill his duty. At the very least, he would try not to kill the other man.

"Shakkahou!"

The captain was a bit surprised at this; Renji using kidou was a danger to himself and everyone around him.

"So this is how you fight when you can't use Shikai? You can't defeat me like this," the captain stated in a neutral tone.

"Yeah, I figured as much. But capturing you isn't out of the question, now is it!" Renji reasoned before responding with more kidou. Predictably, one of the red orbs exploded right in his face.

Seeing an opportunity, he readied his own spell. "Hadou no yon, Byakur…" but stopped when noticing his opponent was gone.

"Bakudou no yon, Hainawa!" a voice shouted from behind.

The captain easily cut through the low level rope before Renji attacked him from above.

"You're going to tell me everything! You're going to tell me why you're doing this!"

Byakuya truly wished he could explain his actions, but until he found and killed Kouga that wasn't an option. He couldn't risk revealing his false story just to make himself feel better.

This was a burden he had to carry alone.

"Explain yourself!" Renji demanded. "And not just to me! To the other captains, Ichigo, the Sixth Division, and especially to Rukia!"

His grey eyes narrowed at his sister's name. She deserved an explanation above all others but knowing would only put her in more danger, no matter how much this betrayal hurt her.

A large explosion shook the roof, knocking Renji off his balance. Seeing an opening, Byakuya powered up another spell, sending the vice-captain flying back towards the entrance of the barracks.

Rukia rushed out towards her friend, trying to help him onto his feet.

"Nii…"

"I will say this one last time: Stay out of this rebellion from now on."

The distraction seemed to have worked as he sensed several shinigami approaching the area. Then again, it would have been hard not to notice all the damage.

"Why?" she screamed.

"Hey, aren't you going to finish them off?" a cruel voice asked. Unfortunately, he had been so focused on detecting the other death gods he hadn't sensed the approaching zanpaktou.

"Looks like you're having fun," the ape one said, already holding his spear.

"What are you doing here?" Senbonzakura asked. Though he hid it well, the sword was just as concerned about this development as his master. The other soul reapers needed to move faster or else they would be forced to intervene. Letting either of them die was not an option.

"My, that's rude. Muramasa-san told us to come and help," the one covered in feathers responded.

"Ha! Let's just kill these Shinigami! What's wrong? Not gonna help?" the sadistic one asked.

"If you won't do it, then we will!" he shouted, moving in for the kill as Renji tried to convince Rukia to run.

"Don't move!" a commanding voice stated as they were surrounded by the Onmitsukidou, Captain Soifon, two members of the Eleventh Division, Lieutenant Kira, and…

"Rukia! Are you okay?"

Grey eyes meet the brown orbs of the Substitute Shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo. Their roles were now reversed.

"Byakuya!"

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So there's the second part!

I don't think Byakuya would be too happy about all the damage done to his property ;)

I also don't think he would bother to learn the names of the "inferior" zanpaktou.

Tell me what you think! I respond!

Love from, EvanSol0919!


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